A Seoul court ruled Monday that the labor union of South Korea’s largest conglomerate, Samsung Group, can protest in front of the company headquarters, opening the way for the union to stage a legitimate rally there.The Seoul Administrative Court accepted the union’s request to cancel a police prohibition on the rally the union planned to hold later that afternoon to honor a Samsung Electronics employee who died from leukemia he allegedly contracted at work.The landmark decision, the first of it

The government on Monday unveiled a detailed plan for its greenhouse gas emissions trading scheme, apparently seeking a smooth start of the program in light of persistent fears from industries about increased environmental costs. A prior notice was issued on the enforcement ordinance which contains key details of a national carbon exchange system which will launch in January 2015. It is a follow-up measure after the National Assembly on May 2 passed the legislation for the so-called cap-and-trad

Some 500 men customers of the biggest room salon in Korea were questioned by prosecutors over charges of illegal sex trade earlier this month, officials said. They were summoned by the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office as part of an investigation into the bar named “Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow” or “YTT,” which hired more than 500 hostesses.The owner of the salon, known only by his surname Kim, is suspected of bribing police officers, evading taxes and soliciting prostitution in his 19-st

Concerns are mounting over the safety of tourists on Jeju Island after a 40-year-old woman was killed on the “Jeju Olle,”a 480-kilometer network of walking trails on the island. The woman’s family blasted the security management of the island’s tourist destinations, and many women expressed concerns about visiting the paths. The victim’s brother set up a blog Monday to criticize the Jeju Olle Foundation and local authorities over their safety and security measures on the trails. “Not a single su

A lower court judge has banned on Monday a 34-year-old man from all clubs for 10 years and sentenced him to five years behind bars after sexually assaulting a woman he met at a night club. The man Kim drank with the victim before taking her to the motel where the assault took place on May 4. The Gwangju District Court also ordered the offender to wear an electronic tag and told authorities to release his personal information.“The nature of his crime is extremely serious, as he forced the woman i

A former Buddhist monk accused of brutally beating a dog to death has been sentenced to six months in prison, court officials here said Monday.The 53-year-old man only known by his surname Lee was convicted of climbing over the wall of a neighbor's house in this southern port city in December and striking the dog on the head with blunt weapons. The dog was of the Korean Jindo breed, which originat

Prosecutors sought an arrest warrant Sunday for a former close aide to President Lee Myung-bak on charges of taking bribes from a savings bank businessman in a lobbying scandal that implicates influential politicians including Lee’s elder brother and an opposition leader. Kim Hee-jung, 44, a former secretary in charge of the president’s personal affairs, was questioned for nearly 15 hours from Friday to early Saturday.He is suspected of receiving around 100 million won ($87,657) in kickbacks fro

Police have found the body of a 10-year-old girl who went missing about a week ago on her way to school in Tongyeong, south Gyeongsang Province, police officials said Sunday. According to the investigators, a 44-year-old neighbor and repeat sex offender is in police custody as a suspect. The suspect has confessed to kidnapping and murdering the girl, and her body was discovered in a sack on a mountain some 10 kilometers away from her home, where he said it would be. The police said they were try

Unionized short-term contract workers at schools nationwide threatened to go on a general strike next month, demanding improved employment status and a salary system that would ensure job security and more benefits.A group of labor unions of non-regular workers recently called for collective bargaining with the Education Ministry and 17 municipal and gubernatorial educational offices, according to the ministry.The ministry and a majority of local authorities rejected the negotiations because the

Prosecutors are investigating CJ Cheiljedang, a core unit of retail giant CJ Group, for alleged tariff evasion, sources said Sunday. The Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, acting on a report by local customs authorities, is looking into allegations that the nation’s largest food maker dodged nearly 5 billion won ($4.38 million) in tariffs on imported pork belly by underreporting its inventory volume.Locally called samgyeopsal, pork belly is one of the most popular types of meat in Korea